The 234 Apartment

WALTHAM — The massive fire that destroyed a big apartment complex under construction in Waltham in July was caused by arson, investigators said Thursday, with damages estimated at $110 million. Initially, fire officials had said they did not believe the 10-alarm fire was suspicious. But once they began investigating the charred remains in detail, they began to rethink the cause, Fire Chief Paul Ciccone said. Advertisement “We systematically eliminated all possible causes,” said the state’s fire marshal, Peter J. Ostroskey. “That led us to this point.” The blaze began in the early morning on Sunday, July 23, and demolished the five-building complex on Cooper Street near the Charles River. The 264 units were scheduled to open next year. Get Fast Forward in your inbox: Forget yesterday's news. Get what you need today in this early-morning email. Citing the ongoing investigation, neither Ciccone nor Ostroskey would shed any light on a specific cause or potential motive for settin...

( College Park Fire Department/YouTube) COLLEGE PARK, Maryland (NBC Washington) - A five-alarm fire at a College Park, Maryland, apartment building burned much longer than it should have, putting firefighters and the public at unnecessary risk, according to College Park Fire Chief Bill Corrigan . The Fuse 47 building on Berwyn House Road was still under construction at the time of the fire. FirefighterNation: Multiple-Alarm Fire at Maryland Apartment Building Construction Questioned in Maryland Five-Alarm Fire Corrigan told the News4 I-Team the standpipe valves firefighters typically use to pump water up through a building in an emergency were left in the "closed" position. The design of the building limited firefighter access to the structure, Corrigan said, and the sheer size also hampered firefighter efforts . "This building was 100 percent within the allowable parameters, but it was built to the absolute max," Corrigan said. "Probably to within ...

THREE OAKS, Mich. (WNDU) - UPDATE People who escaped an apartment fire in Three Oaks are going back to save any belongings they can carry. 14 families had to evacuate as Hidden Harbor Villas caught fire early Saturday morning . A Michigan State Police fire investigator says the fire started in a vacant apartment on the second floor near the utility closet but he says it's not suspicious and he doesn't believe it was arson. That's not much comfort to the families, only two of whom had renters insurance. Melissa Lawson, one of those affected, said, "We were running to just get out the door. She had some clothes in the diaper bag, but she was just in her diaper and we grabbed a blanket. Nobody had shoes, no one. " Peter Trigg, another person affected, said, "Honestly, I'm not worried about what I can save. I thought everything was a loss, and everything I can find is just a blessing. It's absolutely a blessing." Neighbors say t...